#pa pagans

[geezerwench]

 Hi Hanover!! Your friendly town Witch here following a message from the Hanover Borough Police Chief to clarify something about our business practices.

All Tarot services are for entertainment purposes only! We have this posted at 3 locations around the Shoppe as well as on every single one of our online listings that one must read prior to booking your experience via our website. (Y se habla español si necesitas un traducción! 🇵🇷)

While I personally didn’t have “police activity surrounding my place of business on suspicions of witchcraft” on my 2023 bingo card, I suppose no one expects the (Hanover) Inquisition!

Not interested in 15th Century Playing Cards as a mode of entertainment? No worries! We have a trove of treasures from artisans galore in store, and a welcoming community to those who wish to grow together.

The Serpent’s Key Shoppe and Sanctuary is and always will be a safe space for those who seek to walk an alternative spiritual path.  We hope to continue to love our neighbors as ourselves while we welcome in Spooky Season and all of the upcoming winter holidays 🖤🐍🗝️✨

(Ps. Huge shout outs to the Mainstreet Hanover team for being the sweetest during all of this and all of the local business owners who came by today to show their support 🖤🖤 pls go support them and all of the events they work so hard to organize!) 

[the-spirit-of-yore]

Achille blessé au talon par la flèche de Pâris, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, 1850, copie d'un original du Musée des Beaux Arts de Valenciennes, Valenciennes, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France

[temple-of-mars]

Buschgroßmutter, Shrub Grandmother, known throughout Pennsylvania Dutch and Germanic Magic.

This crystal pendulum talisman will undergo a strong ritual of consecration to the Buschgroßmutter, dedicating it to her and making it a powerful sacred object that establishes a connection to her. Buschgroßmutter is a powerful tree entity, akin to a forest Goddess, that is called upon for guidance, especially by Hexerei Practitioners. She was known throughout Germany, Austria, and later in America to some of the Pennsylvania Dutch. Known as Shrub Grandmother, she is appears as a wise older, mossy matriarch tree entity with long white hair and a magic staff. She is helpful to those who are kind and generous. She is often sympathetic of those who experience hardships in life, especially poverty, and offers support in trying situations. She is quite malevolent toward those who are malicious and problematic without reason. She is a stern, tough, no nonsense woman who is very knowledgeable. She is representative of strength, wisdom, independence, perseverance, and vengeance. She helps to provide wisdom and spiritual knowledge to you. She can be called upon for strong spiritual protection, combatting malicious people, magic, spirits, and entities. She would be considered darker arts to black arts and enjoys exacting revenge on people to obtain justice. She is quite ruthless and aggressive when it comes to vengeance magic. Please note, as stated, she is no nonsense! She WON'T tolerate any form of disrespect and may lash out at those who deliberately insult her. She doesn't cater to every whim; she gives guidance, wisdom, and assistance, but she expects effort on your part, as part of her lessons are about encouraging people to establish independence, personal power, and self-reliance. She enjoys nature, trees, plants and animals, they're all sacred to her and she protects them from spiritual attacks. This talisman acts as a strong energy conduit tuned to her power. This consecrated talisman is great for increasing personal power, gaining wisdom and insight, and increasing assertiveness. It is an excellent piece used to break free from spiritual constraints, develop independence, success, as well as hone your skills in vengeance magic. Additionally, it gives occult knowledge, usually via dreams or intuition.She often appears via dreams to inform you about important events, to give occult knowledge, teach you her magic, or to give messages. OFFERINGS: She appreciates thoughtful offerings, moss agate and tree agates are a favorite of hers. Pine needles, juniper berries, and thoughtful forest related gifts. Candles that are dressed with herbs such as mugwort. Honey bread or cakes. You may even plant a tree and dedicate it to her, or give her a figurine. She especially enjoys art and hand crafted items. Pendulum is great for divinatory purposes and receiving answers from her. It acts as a conduit to her for prayer requests. It can be utilized in ritual work for additional strength. Place near your pillow to receive dreams.

Talisman available at Temple Of Mars Hexerei on Etsy.

♦️WE ARE NOT AFFILIATED WITH ANY OTHER OCCULT SHOPS OR OCCULT PRACTITIONERS♦️

♦️Written descriptions and photos exclusively belong to us, Temple Of Mars Hexerei. You may not copy our item descriptions or photos for profit in any way, shape or form. We realize our item descriptions contain interesting, rare historical and metaphysical information, therefore you are welcome to share item descriptions for strictly informational purposes only, or strictly as a way to positively promote our shop, but when doing so, site that it comes from Temple Of Mars Hexerei. Thank you♦️

[sp00kyw00dlandwitch]

Hey everyone! I’m looking for new moots & friends in the greater Pittsburgh area! I’m 23 years old, I’ve lived here my whole life and I recently graduated from Penn State main campus. So bc of that & the job market I’m probably gonna be living here for a good bit. I’m bisexual & nonbinary (use she/her & they/them pronouns equally when referring to me). I’m AuDHD (autistic + ADHD) & have depression, anxiety, & PTSD (& possibly CPTSD). I’m also an omnist where I observe multiple deities from hellenism, roman paganism, polish paganism, druidry, irish paganism, and vajrayana buddhism. I also practice witchcraft mainly nature based, pagan deity, & ancestral. My special interests are animals, environmentalism, wildlife conservation, anime, frogs, the ocean, the moon, divination, film, gothic literature, manga, gremlincore, grunge, & squishmallows. I also like to paint terracotta pots for my plants and I just got into crocheting today. :)

[caffeine-and-sunshine]

Our patient is (thankfully) sleeping so we’re spending some time with Dad this morning and meditating on His form of Khonsu pa-Khered, or Khonsu the Child.

Strangely there’s not a whole lot of information about this aspect of Dad. We know He is considered a form of Ra, the Divine Child of Amun and Mut. We know He wears the sidelock of youth. That’s it! So if anyone has any good reads and sources about him, we’d love if you could send them along!

We get Khonsu pa-Khered in a nice smush with Ihy, whom we worked with awhile back after He approached us before we knew Dad. I enjoy the implied association with music in reference to Khonsu.

Image from the Brooklyn Museum

[youdonthavetocallmedarlinnn]

Old charms that have been refurbished 😌

[thechaoticgingers]

took some time with friends ( and Bellatrix, our 14yo cat) to relax and recharge for the new year.

The show lineup is shaping up for 2025, can’t wait to see yall around Pennsylvania (and maybe some surrounding states 👀)

[tet-asw]

Open Litha (and TET's Thirteenth Birthday) Tickets, Sat, Jun 15, 2024 at 1:00 PM | Eventbrite

Source: Open Litha (and TET’s Thirteenth Birthday) Tickets, Sat, Jun 15, 2024 at 1:00 PM | Eventbrite

https://tet-asw.org/2024/06/05/open-litha-and-tets-thirteenth-birthday-tickets-sat-jun-15-2024-at-100-pm-eventbrite/

[astra-ravana]

The Power Of Ley Lines

Ley lines are straight lines or tracks, essentially energy grids that stretch across the earth in every direction. The ancients marked these lines with stone monuments and pagan temples. Our ancient ancestors could feel the magick and power emanating from these lines, so they set up natural sanctuaries and called the intersections of the ley lines sacred places.

If we look at some of the world's most important sites on a map, we can draw straight lines between them. These lines form a grid-like pattern across the entire surface of the planet. Stonehenge, the Great Pyramids of Giza, and Machu Pichu are sacred sites the connect, through the lines, with many other sites, including landmarks like Mt. Everest.

You won't find the ley lines on a typical geographical map or in a history book. They are mostly a topic in occult books or folklore. The contemporary concept was developed by Alfred Watkins in 1921, who believed so strongly in ley lines that he organized a group, that gathered in England and walked the countryside in search of them.

Faerie Paths and Corpse Roads

Spirits often travel the earth along ley lines. In England and throughout Europe there is a concept referred to as a 'corpse road'. A corpse road was a path taken by funerary processions to escort the recently deceased to their final resting place. Terrifying stories are told of supernatural creatures on corpse trails that, more often than not, correspond with ley lines.

Faeries, also known as the Fae, the Fair Folk, or the Sidhe, are known to travel along specified paths as well. There are many stories from Ireland and the British Isles that describe Faerie pathways leading into hills or over Fae bridges. These paths also follow ley lines. People are warned not to ever travel a Fae path during twilight hours (dawn or dusk) or at night, for fear the Faeries would steal them away.

The Importance of Ley Lines Today

Though the concept has ancient roots, ley lines are just as relevant in modern practice and very much affect us. The planet is like a living being, in and of itself. It produces energetic vibrations that we can both feel and interact with, if the conditions are right. The ley lines are like earth's veins; sacred sites where the planet allows us to easily tap into her essence.

Of you feel particularly revitalized after visiting your secret hiking spot, swimming in a body of water, or digging your toes into a patch of dirt or moss, then you know a taste of the potency that comes with being near a ley line.

The Affects of Ley Lines

• If your home is on a ley line, it may make thr energy more intense or chaotic.

• You may not be able to relax and sleeping may be difficult.

• You may experience increased paranormal activity, including apparitions, disembodied voices, and encounters with spirits, Faeries, or elementals.

• If your business is on a ley line, you will most likely notice an increase in energy, positive or negative. Your business may be considered haunted.

• When ley lines intersect, any building located on the intersection will have a constant flow of energy. This will cause supernatural occurrences and regular chaos.

• At ancient/sacred sites on ley lines, you will experience spiritual development, enlightenment, awakenings, visions, feelings of peace, messages from beyond or spiritual downloads.

Discovering Nearby Ley Lines

Finding your local ley lines is easier than one wound expect. Think of any historical landmarks in your area. Native, ancient, and pagan landmarks are excellent starting points, as are caves, rivers/creeks, manmade mounds, burial grounds, etc. The ancient natives were very in tune with nature and knew the lines intimately.

In addition, consider local sites with well-known hauntings, supernatural activity, or legends attached to them. Locations with high paranormal activity are most often on or near a ley line. For example, Gettysburg PA, Washington DC, and further, every state capital are located on ley lines.

Locating a Ley Line

After investigating your local sites and finding possible line spots, it's time to make the journey to confirm it in person. This is a sacred journey and you should prepare as such. Cleanse yourself before traveling to any sacred place so you can be as spiritually pure as possible. This will make the energy from the lines easier to sense. It's also a wise idea to bring along a pendulum or dowsing rods. Once there, be open to any sensation. You may feel nervous or excited.

You can dowse and find which areas have the highest energetic charge, test each place with the pendulum/rods, if they spin or swing vigorously, you are very close to the ley line.

Ley Line Magick

In addition to being excellent places for spirit work and necromancy, the energy of the lines can be harnessed to super charge manifestation. Enlightenment is primary. It should go without saying that visiting a ley line give you divine insight, spiritual downloads, and/or a total spiritual awakening.

Healing is another prominent form of magick performed at ley lines. While there, ask the earth and the spirits to send healing vibrations up through your feet and throughout your entire being. Stand still for a while and feel the healing energy pulse through your body. Few sensations match this potent connection.

Other forms of ley line magick include drawing love, abundance, meditation, grounding, cleansing, and charging. You can perform entire rituals on top of ley lines to add primal power to the working and drastically increase the success rate of your spell.

Ley Lines in the US

• Montana Megaliths, MT

• Pryor Mountains, MT

• Bighorn Medicine Wheel, NY

• Sedona, AZ

• Serpent Mound, OH

• Mount Shasta, CA

• Mount Denali, AK

• Tocobaga Indian Mound, FL

• Uinta Basin, UT

• Chicago, IL (Lake Michigan)

• Yellowstone National Park, WI

• Pine Barrens, NJ

[upthewitchypunx]

Pagan Shop gets Police Chief warning about PA "Fortune-Telling" laws - News, Paganism, U.S.

A friend told me about this. This article states the law statute. A law from 1973, not 1873.

[the-spirit-of-yore]

Colonne de la défense (détail), Valenciennes, France

[ladyiristheenchantress]

Morals and Ethics

Hello Friends!! to preface: This post is not here to police anyone on what is the 'correct' way to practice. My aim on this post is to be culturally and magically informed, so this isnt going to be a take down of any belief or path line. Instead this post is offered up as a way to not only build your own moral frame work, but get you thinking about where you stand magically and enhance how you practice! Our moral frameworks are all unique, something that would be a faux pas in your practice might be something thats culturally common in others, so lets throw on our thinking caps and get started!

What is building an ethical and moral framework?

Building an ethical background in witchcraft involves establishing a set of principles, values, and guidelines that guide your magical and spiritual practices! In essence It helps ensure that your actions align with your moral compass (Wherever it may lie). This background can help you make informed decisions, cultivate energy, and maintain a respectful and balanced relationship with both you and your magic.

Some religions and paths have their own moral and ethical framework, for example lyma is this idea of "something to be washed away" and is a big deal when practicing within Hellenic Spaces! It would be immoral to approach an altar without washing your hands if they were dirty, but on the flip side some cultures actively encourage dirty hands like people who worship earth within their gardens. Depending on your path you might have a specific framework.

Another aspect is moral frameworks change and that is ok!! Its important we aren't stagnate and its ok to change your mind and feel like you want to change things up. That is totally reasonable and people do it all the time like with politics, religious affiliations, jobs, and more! Ethical and Moral compasses can change just like we do.

How to build an ethical framework

Self-Reflection: Start by exploring your own values, beliefs, and moral code. Reflect on what is important to you, what you stand for, and how these values relate to your magical practices. Also now would be the time to decolonize your beliefs and explore your biases. Its ok to acknowledge your bias, as long as you are working through it. If you dont know what decolonizing your beliefs is I left a helpful video above, just click 'decolonize your beliefs'

Research and Study: Deep dive into different ethical systems and philosophies. Familiarize yourself with various witchcraft traditions, such as New age spirituality, Pagan magical systems, and country/area specific + their associated ethical guidelines. Read books and articles about ethics in witchcraft whether you agree or disagree. During this time you are simply collecting as many perspectives as possible and comparing them to how you feel, don't feel pressured to follow something if you don't feel it applies to you.

Connect with a Mentor or Community: If possible, seek guidance from an experienced witch or spiritual space who can share their ethical insights and offer advice on building your own ethical framework. The best part is, different spaces will produce their own ethical codes of conduct. For example some spaces don't allow love spell discussion for example, which is an ethical guideline.

Create Your Own Code: Based on your self-reflection, research, and guidance, create your own personal code of ethics. This code should reflect your values and guide your magical practices. It might include principles like harm none, respect nature, work for the greater good, or take no shit. Wherever you feel you sit, walk with it. Whatever comes natural to you explore it. Write down what you believe as a symbol, but do so in pencil so you can change it as needed!

Regularly Reevaluate: As you gain experience and your understanding of ethics evolves, revisit and update your ethical code. It's important to grow as your spiritual journey progresses like I mentioned above. You are not a static person, allow yourself to experience your moral compass and how to bends. Allow yourself to be fluid and honest. Not everyone is 'love and light' or 'fuck authority' your allowed to be who you need to be!

Different Types of Ethics in Witchcraft:

Note: This is not every type of ethics, but rather a couple examples of the ethics you may see in your research and which group it belongs too. This area is not meant to endorse or critique an ethical guideline but instead showcase the many that do exist.

The Wiccan Rede: "An it harm none, do what ye will." This is a central ethical guideline in Wicca, emphasizing the avoidance of harm to others as a core principle. Another one is The Threefold Law, this law suggests that the energy you send out, whether positive or negative, will return to you threefold (three times what you sent out). This encourages practitioners to be mindful of their actions.

Green Witch Ethics: Green witches emphasize their connection to nature and the importance of nurturing and protecting the environment. Their ethical background often centers around conservation, sustainability, and working with the Earth's energies respectfully.

Personal Responsibility: Some witches adhere to a more individualistic code of ethics, focusing on personal responsibility and accountability for their actions.

Balancing Left hand and Right hand: For some, ethical considerations involve finding a balance between Right and Left hand magic, and acknowledging the potential consequences of working with both, one, or neither. The right and left hand path are types of magical systems that involve different attitudes towards magic, the right hand emphasizing healing and selflessness, and the left hand emphasizing individuality and shadow aspects.

Respect for Spirits and Deities: Many witches emphasize the importance of showing respect and gratitude to the spirits, deities, and entities they work with, recognizing their agency and autonomy.

Are there any absolutes that I should be aware of?

Absolutes are ethical things that you do need to make sure you are integrating! These are really important things to note when you are learning, because if you do choose to disregard these you could contribute to some really bad concepts that intrinsically cause harm to real people

Respect - Cultural awareness, avoiding appropriation, and looking out for other people can be important. Its important that you fully evaluate a moral system before indulging in it. For example: In the love spell discussion and lot of cultural practioners voices are left out of the discussion, same with baneful discussions. Its important to listen to many groups of people and take stances that dont turn peoples cultures into a monolith, demonize them, or silence them.

Hate groups and cults - Its important that you check where a belief comes from and see if it matches with any hate groups or cult rhetoric. These groups create really flashy and easy to digest claims to try and push an agenda kind of like a salesmen. Their whole job is to try and push you into their group so they can get money, power, fame, and in some cases carry out atrocities. This corresponds with that decolonization conversation from earlier, because it can help keep you and other witchy friends safe!

Nuance - Its important to keep nuance in the conversation. Don't take extremely black and white stances if you aren't knowledgeable on the subject. I think even advanced practioners need to remember to keep nuance in their opinions and keep an open mind when presented with new information or moral ideals. Keep an open dialogue when you are having conversations, and remember to keep asking yourself why you believe the things you do.

Remember that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to building an ethical background in witchcraft. Your ethical code should be a reflection of your personal beliefs and values. It's essential to be true to yourself and to strive for a harmonious practice that aligns with your own spiritual journey! Enjoy the ride :)

Tip Jar

[temple-of-mars]

🔷⭐♦️ "You Pennsilfaawnisch Deitsch took something with you. Something that both haunts and protects you. And you left us poorer for it..." 🔷⭐♦️

(Old Germanic Fraktur Folk Art, a needlepoint image depicting a griffin spirit, along with hearts and birds. Artwork is not ours, all credit is given to the original artist).

We'd like to share a quote that resonated with us, regarding the spiritual fortitude, magic, and spirit friends of the Pennsylvania Dutch immigrants. We've read this interesting quote from a book, Once Upon a Hex, this particular excerpt is written by a history professor in Mannheim, Germany:

"You Pennsilfaawnisch Deitsch (Pennsylvania Dutch) took something with you. Something that both haunts and protects you. And you left us poorer for it. This has been a troubled land. When our German tribes displaced the Celts, the celtic spirits rested uneasily at first. But the celtic widows and orphans were absorbed into our tribes and brought some of the ancient magic into our midst.

When the Romans came, the bloodshed stirred up the old spirits and added fresh souls to the porridge. Confrontation, then absorption into the mercenary machine, and the end of our tribal identity.

Next, Christianity with God's message of peace and man's brutal distortions. A time of forced conversions and mass executions. Still, the old spirits stirred and welcomed the new energy into the mournful pool.

Then the push and pull of the so-called Dark Ages. There were tranquil periods when new gods of progress faded from the backwaters and left the people to the old rhythms of the land. So in between the temper tantrums of bishops and the greedy predations of feudal lords, the old spirits dwelt among the peasants. Those spirits infused the old wise ones with healing energy and food for the soul.

But the growing institutions of church and state needed to feed their appetites for control. So we came out of the Dark Ages and into the darkness. The endless wars, the plagues, the religious hysteria, and "witch" killings, and the peasant revolts and the slaughter at Münster, the quests for territorial dominion under the cover of Catholic-Protestant strife, and the persecution of the anabaptists.

It was the time when the old rhythms started to unravel. It was the time when the old spirits cried out at the murder of the old wise ones. It was the time when the stage was set for your people's departure.

In pockets along the Rhine, in Alsace, and in Switzerland, some of the old ways and old spirits hung on, biding their time. When the New World was opened to the people of the Rhineland, the impulse of these spirits made it inevitable that the humans in touch with them would burst out of their confinement.

I believe there is a spirit essence within a people. It is forged out of their diverse predecessors and out of their common suffering. It is not a ghost that haunts them. It is their way of haunting others.

It was that protective capacity the emigrants took with them. They took our best spirits, our ghosts of laughter, and our healing presences. And the last century makes it obvious that we were left more vulnerable when we lost these things.''We had stone quarry spirits and woodsmen spirits, spirits of the rye and barley fields, ghosts of grist mills and blacksmith forges, and even a turnip spirit. They all went to Pennsylvania...

But we are getting close to a new time. Many of the old German things seem to want to come back to us. Maybe you can help us find these old ghosts. If you want to find them, go back to the beginning of the Pennsylvania experience. They traveled with the emigrants in tool boxes, dowry chests, crocks, and seed packets."

He's not only referring to the fortitude and metaphorical spirits of the people despite the struggles they've faced, but the literal spirits that the Pennsylvania Dutch immigrants have brought with them to Pennsylvania from Germany. These were once important elemental spirits and guardian spirits that many German families communicated with on a daily basis and honored frequently. Spirit communication and spiritualism were once common and a part of many people's everyday lives.

[sophieinwonderland]

More from the doc: Every Tibetan Buddhist is a monk now!

Before getting to the most ridiculous part of this... While a minority of the endogenic community is trying to change the language, this community is largely separate from the tulpamancy community who actually use the language. The push to change language from systems who largely aren't tulpamancers and aren't part of the tulpamancy community would really accomplish little more than sew division between these distinct groups of plurals who should be united.

Thoughtform is a bad term for a mostly psychological practice because it has a long history in spiritual and pagan communities. (Source: My host was in a Wiccan community that made thoughtforms as a teen) It's not something new coined as a replacement. It's using a common term for a different phenomenon in a way that will create confusion.

"Willogenic" is a bad term, IMO, because it implies the headmates are simply "willed" into existence, diminishing the level of practice it takes many tulpamancers to create headmates. The tulpamancy community aren't going to go for that either.

Both of these are bad alternatives.

And I do consider it to be falling for anti-endo propaganda, because while there have been a few Tibetan Buddhists to express discomfort with the term, they've all been ones exposed to syscourse and anti-endo talking points. When the question was posed to Buddhist subreddits, most didn't have an issue with tulpamancers using the term.

There are also no debates about the tulpa being used in horror media or in Genshin Impacts "Hydro Tulpa" boss, showing this topic is exclusively confined to syscourse.

If the main variable for whether a Tibetan Buddhist finds it offensive is whether or not they've been exposed to anti-endo talking points or not before hand, I think that's something that should be taken into consideration.

Remember, you are not immune to propaganda.

Now, to the big thing though...

Do you think all Tibetan Buddhists are monks????????

Is "monk" to you just a word that applies to anyone practicing Buddhism???

Because as far as I know, exactly ZERO of the anti-tulpa people are Buddhist monks.

To be fair, none of the pro-tulpa ones are either. I don't think any actual monks/lamas have commented on this specific issue.

Now, I have pointed to the Dalai Lama, who is the highest monk in Tibetan Buddhism, saying the West and other religions could take Tibetan Buddhist meditations.

While broad, I think this can be extrapolated to apply to the practices tulpamancy drew inspiration from as well, establishing that Tibetan Buddhist meditations are open practices by default unless stated otherwise.

As of yet, I haven't found any evidence of a Lama or other spiritual leaders of Tibetan Buddhism establishing the sprul pa practice as some sort of closed exception.

But this paragraph from the doc highlights for me why I have a hard time taking the anti-tulpa side seriously. If you're going to white knight for a religion, you have GOT to learn the most basic facts about it.

Like, you know, how not everyone who practices the religion is a monk.